Best PlacesBelmont Cragin, Chicago, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Belmont Cragin, Chicago, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Belmont Cragin, Chicago ranks 3,653rd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Belmont Cragin, Chicago
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Belmont Cragin, Chicago's strengths and weaknesses
Where Belmont Cragin, Chicago ranks high
- BikingBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 89% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where Belmont Cragin, Chicago ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 54 pleasant days a year, better than only 1% of neighborhoods
- Short commute38.0 minutes each way, better than only 4% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Belmont Cragin, Chicago
A household needs to earn about $92,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Belmont Cragin, Chicago home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $80,089, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Belmont Cragin, Chicago's effective rate of 1.39%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Belmont Cragin, Chicago
Belmont Cragin, Chicago runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Belmont Cragin, Chicago.
Who works in Belmont Cragin, Chicago, and how
Work in Belmont Cragin, Chicago centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 75%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 16%
Life in Belmont Cragin, Chicago
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Belmont Cragin, Chicago.
What the weather is like in Belmont Cragin, Chicago, month by month
Belmont Cragin, Chicago sees roughly 54 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 19. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 26° | 19° |
| April | 62° | 49° | 39° |
| July | 87° | 76° | 66° |
| October | 67° | 56° | 46° |
Flying in and out of Belmont Cragin, Chicago
Chicago O'Hare International sits about 8 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 40.8 million passengers in 2025, with 305 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Belmont Cragin, Chicago
Schools across Belmont Cragin, Chicago average a C, better than 38% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Stem Magnet Academy ElemB+ · 53% proficient
- Horizon Science Acad-belmontD · 16% proficient
- Christopher House Chrt EsD− · 15% proficient
Top middle schools
- Northwest Middle SchoolF · 6% proficient
Top high schools
- Steinmetz College Prep HsF · 6% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Belmont Cragin, Chicago school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Belmont Cragin, Chicago measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Belmont Cragin, Chicago against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Belmont Cragin, Chicago suits
Common questions about living in Belmont Cragin, Chicago
Is Belmont Cragin, Chicago a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Belmont Cragin, Chicago ranks 3,653rd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on biking, big-city access, and cell coverage, and lowest on the weather and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Belmont Cragin, Chicago expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $327,264. The overall cost of living runs about 1% above the national average. Set against a $80,089 median income, cost of living beats 44% of neighborhoods.
Is Belmont Cragin, Chicago safe?
Belmont Cragin, Chicago is safer than 36% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $430 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Belmont Cragin, Chicago?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 19. That works out to about 54 pleasant days a year, more than 1% of neighborhoods.
Is Belmont Cragin, Chicago good for families?
Schools beat 38% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 36%, and childcare runs $1,105 a month.
Compare Belmont Cragin, Chicago with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Belmont Cragin, Chicago. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Belmont Cragin, Chicago represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Belmont Cragin, Chicago detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Belmont Cragin, Chicago: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Belmont Cragin, Chicago: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Belmont Cragin, Chicago: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Belmont Cragin, Chicago: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Belmont Cragin, Chicago detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.